The very unique World Children's Art Museum in Okazaki おかざき世界子ども美術博物館

As you can see from my latest barrage of photos, I've been wandering in Japan again. At places I've never been to, Nagoya, Gifu and Okazaki.

I saw a lot of wonderful things, beautiful things, preserved from the past, relics of proud history.

Yesterday I went to Okazaki, an idyllic little city with its own proud history. It is the site of the great Okazaki Castle (birthplace of the famous Tokugawa Ieyasu) and the 1300 year old Takisanji Temple.

Before I went to these two famous places, I visited the very unique World Children's Art Museum in Okazaki.

Outside the World Children's Art Museum in Okazaki

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

The museum had gathered the works of many world-famous artists when they were children, or in their teens.

Aside from that, it was also displaying the (admittedly impressive) artwork of children from nearby schools.

Yesterday was also the very last day of their special exhibition of optical illusion-related artwork.

But what truly fascinated me was their so-called "Do Zone", a place with four different workshops for parents and children to work on drawing, clay modeling, handcrafting etc. It was Sunday, yesterday, so it was crowded.

Entering the zone of parent/children art workshops

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

EB (acrylic) classroom, kids can turn their designs into coasters, beaches and other stuff.

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

Drawing class.

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

It was heartening, and absolutely inspiring, to see the children of Japan being exposed to the beauty of art at such a young age, and also given the opportunity in participating, in creating their own art. That explains why Japanese people in general are more appreciative of the arts and culture. While in Malaysia, "art" is usually used as a dirty word. "Being an artist" is the scariest thing a parent could ever hear from their children. Creativity is often being stifled, having an imagination is often being scoffed at, this is the environment most Malaysian children had to deal with, for generations. No wonder we grow up so cynical and disdainful of things we don't understand.

I am envious of the Japanese children, and in awe of their parents, who would let, or even join their kids in these activities.

Outside the museum is a large park, there are statues, an observation deck, and soothing music blaring from the outdoor speakers. It's almost fantastical, wandering about in such a place.

Forest of Art?

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

The park surrounding the World Children's Art Museum in Okazaki is full of nice statues

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

Observatory deck

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

Dragon fountain

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

My photos didn't really do the place justice. This series of short Youtube clips might give you a better idea what the museum and the area surrounding it are like.

I visited the World Children's Art Museum in Okazaki. It's quite a unique museum, collecting paintings from famous...

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Sunday, September 13, 2015

Bersih 4, Malaysians marching for the good of their nation

Malaysia will be celebrating its 58th year of independence tomorrow (August 31st).

But at this very moment, on the eve before our Independence Day, tens and thousands protesters have taken to the streets to call for reforms, flooding the cities with yellow. We have reached the second day of this 2-day large-scaled rally. This time, people are calling not only for electoral reforms but also for the resignation of the current Prime Minister. It's ongoing, but I need to remember this. Perhaps this Bersih 4 of 29th and 30th of August, 2015 will be remembered as a watershed moment in our nation's history, even though, unsurprisingly, and typically, such things will surely be struck off from our history books.

Here's the Great Leader, condemning the people who wanted to march for the good of the country.

Najib said the actions of Bersih were seen as deliberately trying to discredit Malaysia's image at the international level.
Posted by The Star Online on Saturday, August 29, 2015

In the past few decades, the authorities have used numerous questionable methods to spread fear among the people, to divide the nation, to suppress all dissent. Having to go through two generations of this is more damaging than I can ever imagined. The previous generations are constantly living in fear, condemning all kinds of street demonstrations, all kinds of rallies, believing that the known status quo is better than the unknown. This is the upbringing that I have endured. It never failed to baffle me.

It's a faraway possibility, but if I ever have children, I want them to stand up for what they believe in, instead of living constantly in fear. I want them to believe that people have to voice out what's good for the country, and drastic measures have to be taken to let these voices be heard, instead of just being quiet and subservient and letting the words of the the previous generations trample over them.

If this blog can still survive til then, I want to use this post as a constant reminder to myself.

So these are the Facebook posts I have posted leading up to, and during Bersih.

Because it is necessary #Bersih
Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Thursday, August 27, 2015

Today, I think this photo is rather appropriate. #bersih
Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir and his wife Siti Hasmah arrived at #Bersih4 too. It's all for Malaysia.
Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

Singing the national anthem at midnight #Bersih4 A day before, our Almighty Leader Najib condemned the protesters for being shallow and not patriotic.
Posted by Edmund Yeo on Saturday, August 29, 2015

A sea of yellow at midnight.
Posted by The Star Online on Saturday, August 29, 2015

A day that ran smoothly from all corners.
Posted by The Star Online on Saturday, August 29, 2015

當權者看到民意嗎？【A1頭條】傘落大馬 20萬人上街促首相下台http://bit.ly/1LCTjuM#bersih4
Posted by 蘋果日報 on Saturday, August 29, 2015

More photos from a music video shoot

The second music video I did with the rock band Alienoid 異種 revolves around a love-hate relationship between a young couple played by renowned actress/ model Agnes Lim 林莉幃 and rising actor Soo Xu Ze 苏熙喆. In which they were willing to do crazy things for love!

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Thursday, August 13, 2015

Photos from a music video shoot

I was shooting two music videos of a local Cantorock band Alienoid 異種 earlier this month. Both are in post-production. Music video shoots have a lot of their own pleasures, especially when you get to experiment with new things, new people, new filmmaking styles etc. I even got to test the Ronin-M Gimbal, too bad it worked only for the DSLRs. The Blackmagic Cinema Camera, which was my main camera, was too big for it.

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

The first music video I shot on the 1st and 2nd of August was more of a heartwarming family story thing, because the song is about the passing of time 時日如飛. It stars local actors Kenji Sawahii (whom I've worked with before in RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS, he played the father of Joey Leong's Mei Ann character), Chythia Tan, Veron Lin and 6-year old Estellis.

I worked with Estellis last year before.

The reluctant lead actress of my new short.

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Wednesday, August 27, 2014

She's now a bit older.

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Posted by TK Cheng on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

BAAHUBALI: THE BEGINNING is badass

While I'm writing this, S.S. Rajamouli's BAAHUBALI: THE BEGINNING is the 4th top-grossing Indian film of all-time. (It's written by Vijayendra Prasad, the director's father)

The first film in a two-part epic, and reportedly the most expensive Indian film ever made, I didn't know about it until the few days leading up to its worldwide release, and was surprised to find out that the film was showing in Malaysia too!

After I saw the film last Friday, I couldn't stop raving about it! And I'm proud to say that I managed to convince some other friends to catch it too :D

Conversation with the family of Yasmin Ahmad

Today is Hari Raya Aidilfitri (Eid al-Fitr), and most of our brethren in the country are celebrating.

Aside from being a public holiday, Hari Raya is about seeking forgiveness from family and friends.

These beautiful values of familial love, friendship, forgiveness and compassion are reflected very much from the films of the late filmmaker Yasmin Ahmad.

Last week, for a documentary that Ming Jin's directing (I'm executive producing), we had the pleasure of interviewing Yasmin's parents, Pak Atan and Mak Inom, and sister, Orked. (yup, she's the namesake of the protagonist in the "Orked trilogy")

James Lee's LAST DAYS OF SCHOOL and other touching father-daughter commercials

A few days ago, James Lee shared a link to LAST DAY OF SCHOOL, a short film he did for Singapore's NTUC Income OrangeAid. Along with his 2013 short FAMILY PORTRAIT 全家福, this is possibly his most heartwarming (and most unabashedly tearjerking) work ever.

Starring newcomer Evon Chua and James Lee regular Mike Chuah, this short film tells the story of Siew Fang, who is finishing high school and has big dreams, but she also has bigger responsibilities towards her family.

Having gotten nearly 70 000 views to date (60 000 from yesterday itself!), his short has became viral.

Watch this if you haven't.


Recently, I have been seeing a lot of touching father-daughter short films and commercials online. Despite not being a dad myself, most of these works have left me a little misty-eyed.

Therefore I'm going to share a few that I've stumbled upon in the last few weeks.

The first one's been pretty ubiquitous, not only had it dominate my Facebook newsfeed, it's been airing on TV as well. LOVING EYES, a Japanese Toyota advertisement (for its Safety Sense feature) which came out last month, shows the numerous car journeys taken by together by a father and his daughter, from the time she was a baby to when she had a baby of her own. The ingenuity of this ad is that it was done in first-person perspective, first seeing the events from the father's POV, and then from the daughter's POV. It really gives you the feels.


Another Japanese ad from last year, which I only got to watch for the very first time last week, is from Tosando Music School. During a wedding, the emcee announces that the father of the bride has a message for her. He steps over to the piano, she's confused because he doesn't know how to play the piano! She's fearful that her dad's going to embarrass her in front of public, until we start hearing the first few notes of Canon in D, and a shared memory begins unveiling itself.


Yesterday, during a meeting, I was shown this charming Metlife Hong Kong ad called MY DAD'S STORY: DREAM FOR MY CHILD (Cantonese version is here). I don't want to spoil this. It's framed by a little girl's essay on her dad. Although it's for Metlife Hong Kong, I believe this ad was shot in Thailand with Thai actors, since I recognized the little girl from last year's MY BEAUTIFUL WOMAN Wacoal ad, now, THAT was a great mother-daughter ad!)


There are way more of these touching father-daughter ads out there, but these are the great ones that I had the pleasure to watch recently.

Shooting a badminton documentary

Over the past few weeks, I have alluded to a badminton documentary that I've been working on. For this documentary, we have traveled around the country, and even going to Singapore, interviewing many people, including Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah, wife of the former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir, numerous badminton heroes of different eras etc. Peggy Loh also described extensively in her blog about one of the interview shoots we did with her uncle, Roland Ng.

Yesterday, it was time for us to shoot the reenactments of a long-ago tournament covered extensively in my documentary.

Short films from the VERY BAD FILM SCHOOL: James Lee Challenge

No, I'm not dissing a film school.

The Very Bad Film School is a one weekend film challenge started earlier this year by Tan Chui Mui with the strong belief that the only way to learn how to make films is... by making films. (which I don't disagree)

There are different challenges in each session initiated by different filmmakers, and usually ends with participants making a short film in a day. These sessions include David Lynch film marathons, listening to experimental music from the past decade, lectures etc.

Last weekend was James Lee's challenge, and it's a series of challenges that truly mirror his own philosophy as a filmmaker!

Interviewing the inspiring Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah, wife of former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir

Last Monday, for the documentary that I am currently working on, I had the honour of interviewing Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah at her office. She had been a role model for Malaysian women (and men) for more than six decades, and played an important role on developing the modern sports of the country. She is also the wife of former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir.

Rest in peace, Fat Yau 肥耀， 一路好走

昨晚突然间收到罗声耀离去的消息感得非常心酸。

几天前知道他得了骨痛热症进了院。 没想到昨晚就走了。

Neil Gaiman and Kazuo Ishiguro talk about genre

Today is a day that is tinged a little with grey.

The husband of a friend passed away early in the morning. I have never met him before. yet I cannot shake away the feeling of melancholy. Their child is very young. So was he.

At night, I received news of screen legend Sir Christopher Lee's passing. He was 93. He had spent more than half a century giving us iconic roles like Count Dracula, and Saruman.

A few weeks earlier, a friend dear to my heart lost her older sister too. When I was with her in Singapore, I struggled to find words to tell her. She looked strong, we laughed through the day, but I wished that was enough to help her momentarily forget her pain.

Recent events are constantly reminding me about the impermanence of life. I do not know what to do, except to just live the moment, I guess.

Just now I had the pleasure of reading a nice article on The New Statesman featuring two literary giants, Neil Gaiman and Kazuo Ishiguro, talking about the complications of genres, politics of storytelling, and the like.

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Wednesday, June 10, 2015

In an article filled with wonderful quotes, I'm going to highlight a few that I really liked.

Vague impressions of Marina Bay, Singapore

Up until my teens, Singapore was like a second home to me. Not only was I born there, due to my father's work, my family were visiting almost every other week, or at least once a month.

We used to live in the Mandarin Oriental, and from there, we could easily go to the Marina Square shopping mall, either for the food court, for the bookshops, for the video game shops, the cinemas and the like. My childhood memories of the place are quite vivid. My nostalgia is tinged with bittersweetness, not because I yearn for it again, but because I marvel at the child who was myself, who did not expect the many things that he would live through in the future.

Therefore, during these short days in Singapore, my father would usually drive from the Marina area to Orchard Road, to visit the places we liked, like the now-gone Borders bookshop, or HMV, or Ngee Ann city and its trustworthy Kinokuniya.

From the window of my hotel room, or within the car, I was very familiar with the skyline of Singapore. At that time, in my earliest recollection, the OUB Centre (now known as the One Raffles Place) and Westin Stamford Hotel (now known as Swissôtel The Stamford) were the tallest buildings, towering over the rest. A few years later, it was joined by the OUB Plaza. These three tall buildings dominated my consciousness for a very long time, and had remained the Singapore skyline of my mind.

360° music videos

Quite an eye-opener!

An hour ago, I saw Lesly the cinematographer sharing Björk’s new music video on Facebook. It's for 'Stonemilker', from her latest album Vulnicura.

What blew my mind is the fact that it's in 360°!

Winning an award at the Cannes Short Film Corner...

Recently, a local filmmaker named Indrani Kopal had won an award from a student showcase that was part of the Cannes Short films Corner. Good for her, congrats!

But somehow, the media had been mistaking her award as an actual, official award from the Cannes Film Festival itself. We don't think we should lie to ourselves about these things (no, I'm not implying Indrani's doing that, she knows pretty well what the award is, but there are too many misleading articles since her win).

So... today, after reading one article to many that showed the writer's lack of research and knowledge on these film festival stuff, I decided to write this lengthy post in response to Edgar Ong's article (more like a poorly constructed rant piece, really), "M’sian wins at Cannes but potential winner at home is banned!"

I can't let this stand.

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS @ Green Film Festival in Seoul 2015 + TALE OF IYA + THE VANQUISHING OF THE WITCH BABA YAGA

Two weeks ago, RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS was screened at the Green Film Festival in Seoul... which was in Seoul. Based on its official website, the Green Film Festival in Seoul (GFFIS) "is the film festival to seek the co-existence between humans and the environment through cinema. Green matters have become one of our common issues, but we still want to meet more people and share the green messages together. We are still living in the age of reckless development, environmental destruction, climate change and poverty. The GFFIS dreams of the co-existence between humans and nature, the alternatives for the future, and the ways to put ideas into action through films. Until the day all these dreams come into reality, we will be here with you and do our works.".

Just some of my photos of Hong Kong (May 2015)

On my trip to Seoul for the Green Film Festival in Seoul last week, I stopped over in Hong Kong for three nights.

Utopia for book lovers.

A photo posted by Edmund Yeo (@edmundyeo) on May 7, 2015 at 11:29pm PDT

David Letterman

The finale "Late Show with David Letterman" was aired today. I have yet to watch it. But I have this to say, because somehow, the show makes me nostalgic.

The Late Show with David Letterman ended today. My earliest memory of the show comes from 1995. (what? 20 years...
Posted by Edmund Yeo on Thursday, May 21, 2015

And now, other articles, videos and posts about David Letterman's retirement. So that years from now, when I read this post, I remember.

Featured on nüyou Magazine (May issue)

谢谢《男友》杂志的专访。 （其实是《女友》杂志啦， 但加了一部分是给男读者的。）

杨毅恒导演告诉《男友》，他是用电影写日记的人，因为他在人生每一个阶段都有不同的故事要说，娱乐观众之余，也能保留一个时代的记忆。 #NanyouMay #thedirectorissue #director #杨毅恒 #nuyoumalaysia

A photo posted by Nuyou Malaysia (@nuyoumalaysia) on May 19, 2015 at 7:09am PDT

Wow, the May 2015 issue of nüyou Malaysia magazine has me in it! Thanks to Andy 池存健 for the great interview!(There's a...

Posted by Edmund Yeo on Monday, April 27, 2015

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS @ Singapore Chinese Film Festival 2015 + Films I caught at the festival

Has there not been update on this blog for that long?

It happens, when you are buried with work.

A month ago, RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS was shown at the Singapore Chinese Film Festival.

At the very same festival, I was able to meet Taiwanese directors like the legendary Li Hsing (considered a godfather of Taiwanese cinema), the influential Wan Jen (of the Taiwan New Cinema, a contemporary of Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Edward Yang's), and the much respected Yang Li-Chou (whose critically and commercially successful documentaries opened the way for Taiwanese documentaries to be shown in their cinemas).

Undercover Barista (Beta version)

Photos from a one-day shoot last week.

The entire album is here.

Photos taken by TK Cheng during a shoot last week.
Posted by Edmund Yeo on Thursday, April 16, 2015

Here are some of my favourites.

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS 破裂するドリアンの河の記憶 @ Malaysian Film Week マレーシア映画ウィーク

Yesterday (19th April) was the last screening of RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS at the Malaysian Film Week, held in Roppongi. Thanks for organizing the screenings, Malaysia Film Week. And thanks to Ando-sensei for doing the Q and A session after the screening.

Rest in peace, Manoel de Oliveira, the oldest film director in the world

Manoel de Oliveira, the oldest working director in the world, passed away three days ago, on the 2nd of April. He was 106.

Weddings of old friends

During the past two Saturdays, through some stroke of coincidence, or maybe because they were fortuitous days, quite a few weddings were held.

So, for two consecutive Saturdays, I attended weddings of old friends from primary school. One was Jasmine, a dear friend from then to now, another was Iong Ying, a friend whom I kept in touch with intermittently, but he had done a lot trying to keep us all connected.

After all, at this day and age, I guess it's quite rare to still be able to remain connected with friends from primary school! That's even harder than high school! Yet we did, with our teacher Tu Lao Shi (Lao Shi as in "Teacher", Tu as in her family name, although her actual English spelling is Thor, which gives her an even cooler name, Teacher Thor), starting from Friendster groups to Facebook groups to Whatsapp groups, whatever it was, we kept up with times.

It's not that we communicate that much, but the line of communication is still there. No one is lost forever. Perhaps that's the beauty.

On Macbook Pros dying and then coming back to life

My 3-year-old Macbook Pro died last week. It was a major tragedy, it inspired me to write a eulogy.

Back in the day, when my comps died, it would take weeks to get it back. Usually, there wouldn't be any good news, either I've lost all my data, or repairing it would cost more than buying a new computer etc. etc.

My horrible experience with a Lenovo laptop bought in 2010 drove me to the edge. It started having HDD problems a few weeks after I bought it, constantly wiping out whatever I saved. Couldn't even let me get back into Windows etc. It was insane, and I was unable to diagnose what was happening with the computer then. I would have long trips in different places where the laptop was practically useless, couldn't switch on, couldn't get onto Windows, data all gone etc.

Replaced the HDD, other things started falling apart. The fan started making weird rumbling sounds, it stopped detecting Wifi networks, it was a major pain in the ass. After a year and a half, I reached the point where I went "screw this, you know what? Even though I have been using Windows and PC for the past 15-16 years, ever since I first used a comp, and even though Apple fanatics generally annoy the crap out of me, I'm going to make the switch to Apple. And so I bought my Macbook Pro on Valentine's Day 2012. I was making a new film, I needed a new start.

I guess this was my Valentine's Day gift to myself. http://instagr.am/p/G_Z9SipxP1/
Posted by Edmund Yeo on Tuesday, February 14, 2012

3 years later. After writing and editing countless projects with this laptop, it finally bit the dust.

I thought it was over. I knew that all these years of heavy lifting probably murdered it.

So I immediately ordered an iMac. It's been a while since I actually had a desktop anyway. (shifted entirely to laptop in 2004, when I went to Perth for my studies). Needed something strong enough to do my future editing.

Surprisingly, my Macbook came back 2 days after repairs. Before the new iMac has arrived. I was stunned.

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS Tweetstorms

I've been trying to find the term for this. A series of tweets in a row about the same thing, usually to alleviate the 140-character limit.

Multi-tweet essay? Multiple-tweets?

Apparently it's called a Tweetstorm.

Since RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS' premiere in Tokyo last October, the film has gotten some Tweetstorm from viewers in Japan. Their thoughts had been very insightful and invaluable, so I always wanted to put them here. To help myself remember.

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS goes to CAAMFest, San Francisco

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS continues its festival tour. This time making its way to San Francisco!

My birthday celebration 2015

My birthday was two days ago.

Unlike last year, where turning 30 made me reflect upon the past decade that I had, this so-called "twenties" that I doesn't belong to myself anymore.

This birthday started out more or less like a few birthdays I had before, I was working by attending a production meeting for an upcoming documentary shoot.

The fun started after the meeting, when Hanae decided to prepare a present for Uncle Edmund!

Of course, we had such a conversation before that:

Me: It's Uncle Edmund's birthday!
Hanae: Whaaaat? Are you joking?
Me: No, I'm not! It's my birthday!
Hanae: But there are no balloons! And cakes! And presents
Me: Uncle Edmund is a big boy, he doesn't need a party! Are you going to give Uncle Edmund a present?
Hanae: Okay.

And so she made me those presents.

Four of my short films played on Astro A-List channel on February

As February is about to end, I would also like to thank Astro A-List (channel 450) for playing four of my old short films, KINGYO (2009), EXHALATION (2010), INHALATION (2010) and LAST FRAGMENTS OF WINTER (2011) throughout the entire month.

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS and SECOND LIFE OF THIEVES on the front page of Daily Tiger @ Rotterdam

One of the most surprising parts of the Rotterdam Film Fest is being on the front page of the Daily Tiger! Very honoured!

Post by River of Exploding Durians 榴莲忘返.

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS and SECOND LIFE OF THIEVES photos @ International Film Festival Rotterdam 2015

Thanks to being suddenly overwhelmed by numerous film projects (webseries, TV series, documentary, feature film) and the ongoing Chinese New Year, I realized that I haven't updated this blog for more than a month! Not since I went to Rotterdam!

If I still don't update anything by tomorrow, this will mark the first time in its 10-year existence that the blog isn't updated in an entire month. Not exactly something I want to do!

So here are the (very much postponed) photos from the International Film Festival Rotterdam, and the premieres of both the film I directed, RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS, and the film I produced, SECOND LIFE OF THIEVES.

Both films had their European premieres exactly a month ago. On Jan 27. And had 3 more screenings from Jan 28 to Jan 30.

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS and THE SECOND LIFE OF THIEVES @ International Film Festival Rotterdam 2015

I'm actually at the airport now, waiting to fly off to Rotterdam within the next two hours.

On the 27th, RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS will be having its European premiere there. So is Woo Ming Jin's SECOND LIFE OF THIEVES (which I produced and co-wrote). I guess both films are linked in many ways, so it's unsurprising that they will both have their European premieres on the same day.

Ode to KLIA 2

The Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (KLIA 2) opened in May 2014. Since then, it became the place I always had to go to whenever I fly to Tokyo. I have been there a couple of times, flying to Bangkok, Busan, Phnom Penh etc.

A stroll through Yanaka Ginza

I've returned from Tokyo yesterday.

Once of them most pleasant experiences I had was visiting the Yanaka Ginza Shopping District 谷中銀座商店街 after having afternoon tea with a friend. The street made me feel as if i were transported to the Edo period, as if I were worlds away from hypermodern areas of Shinjuku and Shinuya.

It was my first time there. That's the beauty of Tokyo, I have lived there for 5 years, yet there's always something new to discover.

SECOND LIFE OF THIEVES 偷·情 trailer

The SECOND LIFE OF THIEVES 偷·情 trailer is up!

The film, which I produced, co-wrote and edited, were screened at the Busan International Film Festival and the Singapore International Film Festival. It will be making its European premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam later this month.

How I celebrated New Year in Japan

First post of 2015!

My New Years of 2010 and 2011 were spent with Maiko the Producer (she's a Director in NHK now) and her family. Which I have written about in detail, and taken great photos, here and here.

The years after that, I have gone to Zojo-ji Temple in 2012 (where people released thousands of balloons in the air after countdown) and the familiar Senso-ji Temple in 2013. Last year, I had to shoot RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS and had a production meeting on New Year's Day, so it was the first New Year in six years that was spent in Malaysia.

This year, I got to return to Maiko's house for New Year Countdown.